Spike nods gravely. He snaps a salute to you then turns to Twilight."Don't worry, I will be back as soon as I can."

Twilight nods, giving you a quick smile, before turning back to her books.

A short time latter you and Spike find yourselves walking towered the edge of town. As you walk Spike starts looking around in a rather obviously suspicious manure. Once he is sure you are temporally alone he leans towered you and whisper,"If you are looking for Luna I might have something that can help."

Spike grins and gestures towered your destination. Hurrying now he runs ahead, quickly reaching the hot air balloon storage shed. Spike runs into the shed and closes the door behind himself, after a moment he reemerges, looking around nervously and clutching a rolled up scroll, sealed with silver wax. You recognize the unbroken seal as belonging to the Princess Luna!

Spike offers you the scroll saying,"This came with another note telling me not to open it and to keep it secret from everypony, even Twilight! It said that somepony was going to come looking for a way to get into Cloudsdale and that I should give it too them. Since you where asking for our balloon I guessed that you are trying to go to Cloudsdale and that the letter was meant for you! It makes sense since you are a member of the royal guard and all, right?"Spike looks almost ludicrously pleased with his own deduction.

Trying to take hold of the scroll, either physically or with magic results in a cold chill passing over you, but nothing worse after that.

Your vision blacks as the world suddenly go's silent. Feeling and smell go next leaving you in a state of complete sensory deprivation.

From the darkness a single point of silvery light springs to life. Before long the darkness is gone, replaced by a blind silver light.

The light burns as feeling returns in the form of cold beyond anything you have ever felt.

"YOUR HART HAS BEEN JUDGED," The cold warms to the point of being merely uncomfortable, "AND HAS BEEN FOUND WORTHY!"

The world comes back in a roar of color and sound. Your eyes open to see Spike leaning over you, desperately shaking you and calling your name.

As your head clears from the strangeness that you just experienced you feel an odd wight around your neck. Looking down you see a large sapphire amulet, on a heavy silver chain. The chain is to small to simply take off, thou there could be a clasp on the back. {Spoiler warning, there is, but it is locked tight with magic older and more powerful then you have seen outside of the place. Like with the letter trying to force or touch the amulet with magic feels oddly cold.}

The balloon is easily taken out and redyed. Fortunately nopony saw your 'fainting spell' except for a passing weather mare, who was apparently in too much of a rush to cheek on you. As you hop into the balloon Spike waves to you, slightly wistfully.

"I wish I could come with you, but Twilight is pretty busy and her number one assists place is by her side in time of need!"The baby dragoon gives you frowns."Of coarse if you need help on your existing trip, away from ponyville I guess I could get Twilight's preemption..."He trails off giving you a hopeful look, but apart from not wanting to deprive Twilight of Spikes help and not wanting to get into trouble with Shining Armor or Celestia, you have the sneaking suspension that this will not be a trip safe for baby dragons.

As you travail towered the cloud city you see a familiar with a familiar telescope laying on its side, atop it. No sign of the pegasus thou.

Cloudsdale itself towers above you, a legendary monument to the pegasus's ingenuity and weather mastery. Ominously the city's upper limits are crowned with storm clouds, thous these are regulated storms, prepared to be moved out over Equestria, rather then the mysterious ones you are hope to learn more about.

As you draw nearer to the city a cloud drifts before the balloon. As it passes by you feel the amulet around you neck chill slightly and you feel an oddly strong compulsion to reach out and touch the cloud, as thou some force was gently, but firmly guiding your hoof. To your surprise your outstretched hoof connects with the cloud in a way that only a pegasus's weather magic should have allowed!

With this new found freedom of mobility you have a bit of maneuvering room. You can meet your friend, cheek the spot where your old contact was, explore the weather factory or go to talk to the Cloudsdale authority's. (Or none of thous if you have another idea)

"And what would you be wanting to know about the weather factory, hum, Zack?" She cocks an eyebrow a you, smirking. "If this was official business I doubt you would have shown up in a purple how air balloon, wearing that adorble necklaces." Her smirk turns positively evil.

A loud whist blows and she turns towered the factory, her smirk turning into a frown. "Buck it to the moon..." She curses low and venomously. Turning too you she says, "Look I don't actually care why you are hear, but I am glade you came by. Something is going on in my factory and I don't like it one dame bit! I got shifted off cloud duty a few weeks ago and have not been allowed in that area of the factory since, at the same time some hay brained, rock chewer started rotating other pony's into clouds, regardless of proper form! You know I don't give a Moon love'in spit what the parchment pushers want, but thous are MY ponys there taking to MY section and I ain't even allowed in? BUCK THAT HORSE APPLE TO THE MOON!" This last she shouts loud enough to draw stares. Not noticing or not caring she continues, "And the only time they send them back out, there so tired they can't even remember how to do there buck'in jobs right! I complained, but apparently Aurora grew a grate big stick up right up her-" She is cut off by another whistle.

She flaps her wings, taking off into the air. "I have to get back to work, but if you want to come along, I ani't going to turn out." She begins to fly off, then stops and whirls around, "WHY ARE YOU STANDING ON A CLOUD!?!"

Inside is another story, bright lights, flowing rainbows and brightly colored pegasus give the place an almost festive feel, amplified by faint music being played over the PA system.

"Like the tones?" Your friend asks. "Only good thing to have happened within the last few weeks, moral thing I guess." She shrugs and fly's up to her stand, overlooking the factory. "Need anything just ask!" She shouts down to you before turning to start barking orders at the workers.

The music is soothing, but something about it feels... off. The amulet seems to agree with the sentiment as it begins to chill noticeably, ruining any soothing effect the music and atmosphere might have provided.

To the far side of the room you can see two doors, one on each end of the wall. One is labeled 'Rainbow Factory' the other 'Cloud Shaping'. Standing in front of each door is an bronze armored pegasus guard, each wearing the sigle of Cloudsdale. They are local law enforcement, so in a pinch you could probably pull rank on them, but as they are technically not part of the guard you would probably have to go to there commanding officer first to confirm your rank and authority.

I might want to see who this Aurora pony is but it might be better to leave that alone for now. I've got get a lead lets start by finding some suspicious activity. looking around he sees a lone pegasus looking terrified, "wonder whats wrong?"

The pegasus sees you looking and runs back to her station. She hastily runs back to her station and starts making an exaggerated show of working, but its clear that she is just shoving cloud stuff around in an attempt to look busy. As you start walking towered her, thous around her start to move away, refusing to look at you.

When you are only a few feet away you can hear her quietly crying, "Please don't transfer me! I have a husband a little filly! Please I didn't mean to look, I just got turned around, don't make me go in there! Please!" Despite her whispered begging, she makes no attempt to flee from you. The music in the room seems to lose all of its warmth and friendliness you see the other workers pointedly looking in any direction, but at the two of you.